DARREN DUNCAN, HIGH-RISK SEX OFFENDER, JAILED IN ST HELENS FOR BREACHING COURT ORDERS

Darren Duncan, a 36-year-old man with a history of sexual offences, has been sentenced after breaching court-imposed restrictions while living in St Helens. Duncan, previously jailed for sexual misconduct involving a 15-year-old girl in Scotland, is described as someone who continues to live a life marked by deception and breaches of court orders.

The court heard that Duncan entered a relationship with a mother of four, who has three daughters and a son all under 16, and started visiting her home in St Helens. He quickly integrated himself into the family, playing with the children and even taking one girl shopping alone. Duncan is subject to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO), which forbids him from having contact with females under 16 unless it's incidental or unavoidable.

Liverpool Crown Court was told that Duncan broke the SOPO by failing to notify his offender manager about his relationship with the woman between May 2019 and February 2020. Prosecutor Peter Killen stated, 'Duncan also stayed at the family's address, which continued until he was jailed in June 2019 for four unauthorised trips to Amsterdam.' While incarcerated, Duncan maintained contact through letters and phone calls, and after release, he resumed visits to the home.

Relatives observed Duncan playing in the garden with the children and noted he once took a girl shopping alone. Police discovered letters from the children, including one in which one girl called him her 'stepdad' and expressed how much she missed him and signed off with kisses. Another girl thanked Duncan for Christmas gifts such as an iPhone and mentioned she couldn't wait to hug him. The third girl wrote to him from jail, saying she missed him and looking forward to his return.

After investigators became aware of the relationship, social services intervened, and the children are now cared for by relatives as their mother no longer lives with them. When questioned by police, Duncan denied being in a relationship with the woman and claimed he had never visited her home.

Duncan, who lives on Bridge Street in Nairn near Inverness, admitted to two counts of breaching his SOPO just before his trial. He explained in his plea that he stayed overnight at her house approximately ten times and met the children, though they weren’t always present. He expressed remorse, stating, 'I am hugely sorry.' Duncan has a lengthy criminal history, including 17 convictions from 29 offences, involving lewd behaviour, stalking, and multiple breaches of court orders. Notably, he was convicted in Scotland in November 2012 of lewd behaviour and received a three-year probation order. In June 2014, he was jailed for two and a half years for a sexual offence involving a 15-year-old.

His record also includes convictions for stalking and two breaches of SOPO in 2014 and 2018, the latter resulting in fines and imprisonment. In September 2018, he served eight months for breaching his SOPO by giving a lift to three teenage girls, and in June 2019, he was jailed again for eight months for travelling abroad four times without informing authorities.

Judge Neil Flewitt, QC, noted concerns from a pre-sentence report, with Duncan’s defense lawyer, Callum Ross, acknowledging his client’s awareness of his situation. Mr. Ross requested a suspended sentence, citing Duncan’s role in caring for his elderly mother and his work as an offshore mechanic earning £376 per day. Duncan, who is on medication for anxiety and depression, expressed remorse, citing feelings of regret stemming from his previous sentences.

However, Judge Flewitt criticized Duncan for repeatedly ignoring court orders. He pointed out that Duncan maintained contact with the mother even after his arrest for breaches, and that the report’s author indicated Duncan’s inability to be effectively managed in the community due to his pattern of deception and disregard for restrictions.

The judge emphasized the seriousness of the breaches, noting that although no direct harm was proven, the risk posed by Duncan living in a household with young girls is significant. ‘It seems to me that any remorse you may have now is concern for yourself rather than for other people,’ Flewitt said. Due to Duncan’s past behavior, the court decided that immediate imprisonment was necessary to protect the public.

Duncan was sentenced to three years and four months in prison. The court also directed for Scottish authorities to be notified so they can consider extending Duncan’s SOPO, which is set to expire in October 2022.